Quincy Center bill about to get first State House hearing

Jack Encarnacao

Friday

Mar 25, 2011 at 12:01 AMMar 25, 2011 at 1:57 AM

A bill central to the planned redevelopment of Quincy Center will have its first hearing next week at the State House. The hearing, before the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government, is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday.

A bill central to the redevelopment of Quincy Center will have its first hearing Tuesday at the State House.

The home rule petition proposes to amend the state’s urban revitalization laws with provisions that apply only to Quincy. Passage would allow a $1.3 billion downtown redevelopment project to function as envisioned in the city’s agreement with developer Street-Works LLC of New York.

The hearing, before the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government, will take place at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

“This hearing is the first step of the legislative process, but I am confident this important bill will be considered quickly,” state Rep. Ronald Mariano of Quincy said. “This legislation is crucial to the redevelopment of Quincy Center.”

In addition to Mariano, the proposed bill is sponsored by state Reps. Bruce Ayers and Tackey Chan and state Sen. John Keenan, all of Quincy.

Advocates for the bill have met with committee Chairman Sen. James Welch of West Springfield to discuss its significance. The bill may also need approval from the House Ways and Means Committee before going to the full Legislature for a final vote.

The bill, modeled after similar redevelopment-related proposals in Boston and Springfield, calls for empowering Quincy’s mayor to give final approval to all building projects in the city’s downtown.

Typically, in state-designated urban revitalization districts such as Quincy Center, the state Department of Housing and Community Development has that power.

The bill also stipulates how tax money from the district would flow into city coffers. The city plans to use the money to cover the bond debt it incurs in buying back improved downtown infrastructure from Street-Works.

Currently, taxation agreements in urban revitalization areas need approval from the state, which collects the revenue and sends it to cities once a year. The proposed change would send the money straight to Quincy on a quarterly basis.

The bill also would allow Quincy to collect new-growth and other assessments on top of property taxes from downtown property.

READ MORE about Quincy Center redevelopment

Jack Encarnacao may be reached at jencarnacao@ledger.com.

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